Rahul Dravid declines extra Rs 2.5-crore bonus for World Cup victory
BCCI announced Rs 5 crore for the head coach and Rs 2.5 crore each for the other coaches. Dravid has asked the board to pay him only Rs 2.5 crore
India's head coach Rahul Dravid poses for photos during celebration after India defeated South Africa in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup final cricket match, at Kensington Oval, in Bridgetown, Barbados, Saturday, June 29. Photo: X/@BCCI
The ultimate “team-man” Rahul Dravid has done it again. He has decided to forego half the prize money that the BCCI announced for him as head coach of the Indian team that won the recent T20 World Cup - Rs 5 crore.
The reason? He does not want a bigger prize money than the other coaches of the team, who are receiving only Rs 2.5 crore.
After India defeated South Africa in the Caribbeans to grab the coveted title after a gap of 17 years, the BCCI announced that a total prize money of Rs 125 crore would be given to the team including the 15 players, the coaches, and the support staff.
While the head coach Dravid was awarded Rs 5 crore, the batting coach, Vikram Rathore, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, and fielding coach T Dilip were given Rs 2.5 crore each.
Rahul Dravid, who has always set high standards for himself as a player and after his playing career, reportedly has informed the cricket board that he would prefer to be paid the same bonus as the other coaches in the team. The board has decided to respect his sentiments.
This is not the first time that Dravid has done this. In 2018, he was the head coach of the U-19 Indian team that won the World Cup. The BCCI announced Rs 50 lakh bonus for Dravid and only ₹20 lakh bonus for the other support staff. On that occasion as well, the “gentleman cricketer” refused to accept a higher bonus than the rest of the support staff.
Subsequently, the BCCI awarded Rs 25 lakh each for the support staff, including Dravid.